Google will donate US $ 270,000 for hygiene projects in schools in Colombia

The resources will go to UNICEF, which will facilitate the creation of potable water systems in 20 institutions in Nariño and Chocó.

This Thursday, Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, announced on his Twitter account a contribution of US $ 33 million for initiatives in Latin America. The resources will be delivered by Google.org, the company’s philanthropic arm, to the NGO Amigos do Bem, in Brazil, and to Unicef projects in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru.

“Our hearts go out to the Latin American communities most affected by COVID-19. We are providing US $ 33 million in new funds and grants to increase access to quality information and support the humanitarian efforts of partners like UNICEF and Amigos do Bem in the region, ”Pichai said.

According to the company, Latin America is entitled to US $ 17 million, of which US $ 1.5 million will be for UNICEF humanitarian efforts , US $ 500,000 for other non-profit organizations and US $ 15 million will be in the form of Ad Grants so that local health authorities and NGOs can position verified and useful information on Google at no cost.

In Colombia, efforts will focus on water, sanitation and hygiene systems in schools to facilitate educational alternation. For this, US $ 270,000 will be allocated. The company explained that said intervention will be in 20 institutions in Chocó and Nariño, departments affected by armed conflicts, natural disasters and migratory flows.

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According to Google, the aid will benefit 5,000 students in the territories, who will have access to clean water for at least five years, supplies to wash their hands for six months and hygiene kits.

El Espectador spoke with Susana Pabón, Google’s communications manager for Latin America, about this initiative.

What motivated Google to make this donation to Unicef? Have you done it on previous occasions?

Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible. Everything we do, from creating our products to our community giving efforts, is about that: how we can help organize what exists in the world. And Google has always been focused on reaching out to vulnerable communities and supporting them in times of need. With Unicef we have been working for a long time on different fronts of action.

In addition, part of those US $ 33 million will go to what we call Ad Grants , which are donations in advertising so that Government entities or NGOs that want to guide campaigns related to the COVID-19 issue can do so for free on the platforms of Google.

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What is the emergency that will be attended in Colombia?

Of the US $ 1.5 million that we are announcing today, US $ 270,000 goes to the construction of equipment to consume drinking water and hygiene kits for schools and children in Chocó and Nariño. We want to support UNICEF to get there.

Why prioritize hygiene needs in Colombia?

That is a specific need that Unicef saw. It was they who presented this proposal. So did the decision to choose Chocó and Nariño. At Google we are not experts in identifying needs in a pandemic, what we do is approach these NGOs, which are the ones who know. And because of the long history we have with Unicef, we trust that your decisions are the right ones. We also do a monitoring with the Google.org team so that the money is being implemented according to what was approved.

Have the institutions to be served already been chosen?

So far we are announcing to Unicef that they have the Grant and, in fact, they are very happy. But the execution has not yet started. Everything is yet to come.

Why did you choose Colombia and the other countries?

We have offices in those five Latin American countries and in Brazil. That is where we have resources, both from googlers that can support and from billing systems, and so on.

What projects will be carried out in the other places? Will they receive the same amount?

In Chile we will be supporting the theme of playgrounds so that children can return. It is US $ 150,000 so they can go to parks and wash their hands before getting on a wheelchair, for example.

In Unicef Peru, the subject will be more specific in health matters, so that there are oxygen tanks available for people who are sick. It is US $ 270,000 for oxygen distribution and personal protective equipment (PPE).

In Argentina we are going to be focused on food because many parents were left without money, without work and there are children in extreme poverty who do not have anything to eat. It is US $ 280,000 for food, nutrition and hygiene.

And in Mexico it is US $ 300,000 for health and nutrition challenges. The rest is an administrative amount that UNICEF needs for the timely execution of these programs.